Abstract.In this paper, the author makes use of the PBL pedagogy to carry out the teaching practically. Through interviewing the students, the author gets a real understanding of the responses of the students. Hence, in accordance with all kinds of the comments of the students on the PBL pedagogy, the author conducts an analysis on the feasibility of the application of the PBL pedagogy in English teaching and draws up a conclusion.
Key words： PBL Pedagogy; Interviewing Students; Analysis; Feasibility
1.Introduction
The PBL (problem-based learning) was originated from the medical education of the 1950s in the western world. In the latter time, it was expanded to the professional teaching reforms of education colleges, business colleges, engineering colleges and so on, and also had changed into one of the most popular teaching methods in the international stage.
As an English teacher working at a medicine science school, the author makes use of the PBL pedagogy in the reading and translation teaching of the medicine articles by combining the characteristics of the medicine majors and college English.
Through a comparison between the traditional teaching methods and the PBL pedagogy, the author makes an analysis and practice on the feasibility of the application of the PBL pedagogy in college English teaching, and hence observes the teaching effect of applying the PBL pedagogy in college English teaching.
2.Definition of PBL Pedagogy
PBL (problem-based learning) is not only a new course and also a new process (Samford, 2003).
PBL is a kind of pedagogy. In such a teaching process, the students are necessary to face up with a great number of the problems that source from the real practices, and also these problems will stimulate them to carry out the more explorations and learn more things (Bound & Feletti, 1997). PBL is also an approach, which is utilized to give assistance to the learning under the guidance of the learning objectives.
PBL is one of the teaching means. One of its characteristics is taking advantage of the problems in the real world to give guidance to the students to improve the ability in the resolution of problems and simultaneously train the students to practice the ability in the critical thinking and also acquire the fundamental concepts that are involved in the courses. In the PBL pedagogy, the groups are utilized as unit; the members of a group are not only collaborative but also independent.
In the PBL pedagogy, the students who are confronted with the problems regard the resolution of the problems as as a motivation to learn (Bound & Felett, 1991). The situations of the problems are confusing, complex and poorly structured. For this reason, with the purpose of resolving these problems, it is necessary for the students to possess the abilities to settle these problems as well as the critical thinking.
3.Advantages of Applying PBL to College English Teaching
The ten aspects in the following can give expression to advantages of the PBL pedagogy in the teaching.
The learning environment of PBL can stimulate the students to learn better and is more humanistic
The learning of the students and the teaching of the teachers become more enjoyable
There is a better interaction between the students and the teachers
The learning in knowledge can get deeper and not only stays at the superficial level of learning
The learning skills that are under the self-guidance of the students attain the encouragement, consolidation and persistence
The exchanges in the different disciplines increase
The cooperation among the students increases
The efforts that are made by the students can be seen immediately, and hence promote the students to become more active to learn and make an enhancement to the learning effects
PBL pedagogy can drive the students to spend more time on the learning behaviors under the self-guidance and take advantage of the more information resources
In the teaching of the PBL pedagogy the teachers and the students have more contacts and get a deeper understanding of the other side, and hence PBL is conductive to the establishment of the good relationship between the teachers and the students
4.Situations Reflected from Interviewing the Students
In the experiment of this paper, the selected students at two classes were from the traditional Chinese medicine seven-year system 2010 of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; the number of the students at each class was 42; the teaching of the PBL pedagogy was conducted in one class, while the traditional teaching method was used in the other class.
After the end of the experiment, the author gathered 15 students from the experimental class to have an interview and carried out a discussion on the learning motivation, the self-learning ability, and the ability to collaborate with people, the translation ability and so on. The students in the interview included the leaders of all groups and the students at the different levels of English learning. Then, the author kept the investigation data and the test results, and classified and stored the responses from the students in the interview.
In the interviewing process, a majority of the students gave expression to their recognition on the PBL pedagogy, and thought that their enthusiasm in English learning increases and they become more initiative in learning after the PBL pedagogy is implemented. As a result, the efforts that are made before class can receive a return at a fast speed, and the students are also promoted to become more active to throw into learning in futures.
Certainly, some students in the interviewing put forward very good suggestions when they were expressing the recognition on the PBL pedagogy. Also, there were a very few of students to hold a negative attitude towards the PBL pedagogy.
In the following, the feelings of some students in the interviewing are expressed.
4.1.Positive comments
In contrast to the traditional teaching methods, the forms and methods of the PBL pedagogy can stimulate the abilities of people in thinking and organization to a greater extent. For example, before giving an explanation to a sentence, it is necessary for people to think and organize the words very well first.
An enhancement is made to the consciousness of students, and everyone will try to put forward his own views and suggestions as much as possible; the students that are easy to go hot and cold and are afraid of making a statement in front of the teachers can own a very good platform to prove their abilities from now on.
The PBL pedagogy promotes the students to become more active in learning and get a full understanding of what they have learnt, and also makes the students have a sense of accomplishment in the process of learning, and hence enriches the knowledge in medicine.
I think the PBL pedagogy makes us really positive in learning from being passive.
The PBL pedagogy makes us get a deeper understanding of the articles. Therefore, we attain an increase of medicine knowledge with no intention and learn the medical vocabularies, and also have a better preparation at class and own a better sense of accomplishment.
In the several months of participating in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy, I feel English learning is not so strenuous now. At each class, the teacher provides us with a medical article and puts forward some questions, and then allows us to look into the dictionary and materials, read it and translate it on our own. At class, the teacher carries out a discussion-oriented teaching for the translation of the article, and all of us can speak our bosom freely. Thus, the classroom atmosphere is rather active.
Through the several months of translation learning in the medicine articles, I find the different between the PBL pedagogy and the traditional teaching method is that PBL can exercise the ability in the organization of words as well as the ability in imagination with an especial effect.
The largest gain from the teaching of the PBL pedagogy is that we will never feel passive once we meet with the medical articles in futures and will never feel sleepy at class. In the group discussion, the ability in communication can attain a good exercise.
Through the learning of this course, I generate an in-depth interest in English learning. This is because that I can know well the ideas of all classmates and make an expansion to the thinking.
Through this course, we get in touch with some knowledge that has a close connection with medicine science and can be seen seldom. Thus, it not only makes an enhancement to the ability to read and translate the medicine articles, and also increases the knowledge related to our majors.
I become more active and initiative at class because the preparation before class is full.
I think this method is very good. In the previous English learning, I did not seek a real understand of English articles, and seldom made an exploration and analysis on the sentences in the articles. In such a teaching, however, I make a serious analysis on many sentences.
4.2.Negative and suggestion-oriented comments
For me, the time used to translate the articles is too long, and also the translation is quite difficult. Thus, the gain from the PBL pedagogy is rather small.
The time for previewing a class is too long, and makes me averse to it.
The medicine articles are too difficult.
Efforts are greater than gains; it wastes time and energy.
I am quite laze, and do not have a preview for a minute. In the PBL class, there are other classmates to help me print materials, and I will take a look at the materials of others if I do not understand anything. Thus, I am the type of muddling along the existing changes basically.
The time for preparing and previewing the class is too long, but so much information is hard to absorb within the shortest time.
The self-learning ability is enhanced, but the efficiency at classroom is reduced.
I feel tired some times, and feel rather sluggish within a period. Thus, I will alternate some simple and pleasant materials or take it easy for a while.
The atmosphere is rather boring if the preparation is not full.
Strengthening and consolidating what I have learnt, and it can help me test the remembering of the words in a real time.
5.Conclusion
Through a year of teaching practice, the observation of the teacher and the responses of the students, a conclusion can be drawn up in the following.
First, the traditional teaching methods have been difficult to meet the demands of all aspects. Therefore, it is imperative to carry out the teaching reform.
Second, the application of the PBL pedagogy in English teaching can stimulate the students to generate the interests and enthusiasms in learning.
Third, with the active and initiative participation of the students in class, the full utilization of the time before class and the full preview on the new knowledge, the teaching effect of each class becomes better, and the teaching gains are greater as well.
Fourth, in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy, the ways of evaluating the students receives the recognition from a majority of the students. The loose and scientific evaluation way creates a more comfortable and pleasant learning atmosphere for the students.
Fifth, in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy, the teaching objectives are clear, and also the learning objectives of the students are definite. Therefore, the realization of the existing objectives can make the students experience the happiness from the gains after the efforts.
Sixth, in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy, the exchange between the teachers and the students happens more frequently, the understanding between the two sides gets deeper, and the relationship becomes more harmonious. Subsequently, the harmonious relationship between the teachers and the students promote the teaching to proceed smoothly. Hence, the PBL pedagogy provides another guarantee for the teachers to attain a good teaching effect.
Seventh, the increase of the self-learning and the improvement in the self-learning ability make an enhancement to the confidence of the students in English learning. As a result, the students believe that they can learn English and use English well under their own efforts. This teaching effect is rare and commendable.
Eighth, the learning model of the cooperation between groups increases the communication among the students, and makes an improvement to the ability in interpersonal communication, the ability to cooperate with other people, and the ability to lead other people, the ability to coordinate, as well as the ability in organization, etc.
Ninth, in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy, the students are better at discovering and resolving the problems. In this process, the students dare to think independently and make innovation. Hence, the awareness of daring to criticize can be stimulated.
Tenth, in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy, as the preparation before class is full, the students at class are rather more active and more willing to express and show themselves.
Eleventh, the PBL pedagogy makes the students’ knowledge out of the language enriched, and makes an enhancement to the ability of the students in reading as well as the ability and effect in translation.
Therefore, from the above, it can be seen that the PBL pedagogy is indeed a scientific and effective teaching method, and worth promoting and using in reality.
However, the PBL pedagogy has some limitation aspects although it has the excellent advantages.
First, the class in which the PBL pedagogy is being implemented should be too large, and is better not to exceed 41 students. Otherwise, it is difficult to get a control.
Second, with the purpose of implementing the PBL pedagogy, it is necessary for the schools to have the sufficient books, electronic library resources and network equipments that are available to students. Otherwise, the teaching of the PBL pedagogy will become the water without a source, and will be difficult to proceed.
Third, the PBL pedagogy is more suitable for the students that have already possessed a very good foundation in English. Therefore, these students become more active in English learning.
Fourth, the teachers and students in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy need to spend longer time and greater energy. It is a test if the teachers and students want to adhere to it in the long run.
Fifth, in the teaching of the PBL pedagogy, the contents in both learning and teaching are deeper and more solid than that in the traditional teaching methods. Therefore, it will certainly make some teaching procedures delayed.
Sixth, the translation of the professional medical articles that are applied to higher levels may make the student meet more specialized knowledge as well as more English language problems. Under these circumstances, it is necessary to have the medical experts and English translation experts to provide the guidance to the students.
Seventh, the application of the PBL pedagogy does not discriminate against other kinds of teaching methods. With the purpose of attaining a better teaching effect, the teachers can make use of the multiple teaching methods at the same time, while the PBL pedagogy can be one of choices.
Eighth, the teaching in this experiment still belongs to the preliminary stage. There is a difference among the experimental objects in English learning. Also, the experimental objects hold the different expectations on English learning. Therefore, the performances of the students are different as well. In the future teaching, it is still highly necessary to continue to observe.
6.References
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[5]Samford, Problem-based learning at Stamford University [OL]. https://www.Samford.edu/pbl/definition.html , 2003.